The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 06/22/2021 - HOUR 3 - NBA playoffs and lottery

Episode Date: June 22, 2021

More on the NBA playoffs and the new rule change for next seasonNBA Lottery is tonightGuest: Stephen Jackson Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest,

SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games.

Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying.

Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok's podcast network on TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me.

I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s.

84 was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Herd. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go. Live. Hour number three.

It's the hurt. Wherever you may be, however you may be listening. IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, FS1. Stephen Jackson, 15 minutes. Former NBA champ. Don't to mess around with Stephen Jackson. I'll give it to you straight. Mark Slare with Rick Buecker, dropped by today.

Joy, how are you? Doing good. It's been an unbelievable sports summer. It's been great. You know, nobody talked about the U.S. Open because the NBA playoffs kind of overwhelmed it. But I watched after the playoff game, one of the playoffs games that went over and watched the U.S. Open. It was actually very funny. So John Rom won.

He's from abroad, so not going to get as much press. But you had Brooks Kepka and Bryce and Shambo who hate each other at the top of the leaderboard. And they both just went, the whole field went under except John Rom. And John was a great story. But that could have been amazing because through the afternoon, when you started watching the afternoon, are we going to get honestly Brooks Kepka and Bryce and Ashambo,

they're like pro wrestlers who hate each other. Like it's like it's just these big alpha males and they can't stand each other. I thought this is going to be unbelievable. They both, listen, US opens are hard. It's a hard course. I do think it's funny, but it's good for golf. A little rivalry. Spice it up a little bit.

Yeah, I mean, Deschambo's more John Daly. He's a little more unhinged. Brooks, Kepka and Dustin Johnson are just big alpha males. Didn't people forget, Jack Nicholas was this big, the bear. He was this big bang it down the fairway. It's not the first time we've had guys who looked like, like Jack Nicholas looked like a football player who could golf. Tiger when he got ripped looked like a free safety in the NFL. And now we've got Kepka, Deschambo, and Dustin Johnson.

who are 370 yards off the tea, I tend to be a Dustin Johnson, Brooks Kepka guy. De Shambos a little unhinged for me. Well, you're not into the shakes and the... 13 eggs for breakfast. How many pieces of bacon, is it? It's 74. I mean, it's just a lot.

I mean, he just eats... How is that healthy? I mean, I love bacon, but... Yeah, it's a little much. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. On Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeard Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged.

It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clivert Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions,

my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw,

unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music.

The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, Follow at Clifford and a TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast.

I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 was big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so you all know.

I mean, at this point, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Keer Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we, are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it.

And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth? Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro.

Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app.

Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. Simply Safe, making people feel safe at home for 15 years. Go to SimplySafecollan.com, customize your security system. Get a free security camera. Stephen Jackson played in the NBA for 14 NBA seasons, six different playoff appearances. He played for Doc Rivers and Ty Lou. Mike Boodinholzer.

So he knows all these coaches are most of them, very well. He is now joining us live. By the way, I just read this. I'm going to share this with you, Stephen. The NBA, I like this, is expected to implement new rules next year to limit non-basketball moves that players have been doing. They kick their feet. That'll now be an offensive foul. They strangely abnormally lean into a defender. That's an offensive foul. Do you like that? Are you okay with that? I just, I know what they're doing.

I know what they're doing, Colin. They're just trying to put a bandit on this bad defense that everybody playing. Kicking the leg out, yeah, I get that. But all the other stuff, you got to credit these offensive players for being smarter. And these guys need to pay more attention to detail on defense. Well, P.J. Tucker plays defense. You like him, right? I love PJ Tucker.

Who else I was talking about? PJ Tucker. Patrick Beverly. Patrick Beverly. Those two guys are old-school guys. play defense in any era because they take pride in it. We know that they're not the best offensive players, but on defense, they're definitely guys that I love watching because that's the way we play, and you got to take pride in it. By the way, it's interesting when you watch

PJ Tucker give Kevin Durant Fitz. Chris Paul, by the way, no longer in his prime, but he played defense. What is the key when you face an offensive player? Give me a Stephen, if I was a great offensive player and I had, I could shoot, I could drive, how would you get me off my game? physically how? Well, this is what PJ Tucker and Pat Belly and guys like Bruce Bowen, they know. Great scores, you're not going to stop them.

You just got to make it difficult. You got to get into them. You just kind of make them miss more shots than they make. Kevin Durand is probably the best score ever, but we say one of the greatest scores ever. And PJ Tucker knows that, but you have to compete, you have to make it difficult. You can't stop them.

You have to have it in your mind going into it. You just got to go out there and compete and try to make it difficult for them. By the way, it should be noted. Milwaukee plays real defense. Phoenix is very athletic. The Clippers play real defense. Was there an NBA player that, I mean, give me an example of a guy that you made a little more difficult.

Like Kobe Bryant, did you make things a little more difficult? As best I could. I mean, at some points, you couldn't do nothing. But, you know, I could say Dirk Dubeski. Derk was the MVP. And when we played against him in the playoffs, you know, he was one of the great. the scores ever, top 10 all time. I think he's top five all time,

if I'm not mistaken. But I knew I couldn't stop him. I just made it difficult for him. I took away the things he liked. He liked to go left. I made him go right. Every time he spun, we made sure another teammate was there. So it takes more than one guy to be a great defensive stop.

It takes a team to stop guys like that, but you just got to take away what they do best and try to make him ask something different to their game, that game. By the way, Ben Simmons lost his confidence. Janus at times at the free throw line lost his confidence. I would think pro athletes, to be a pro athlete, you have to be hyper confident. But I mean, did you have teammates that ever lost their confidence?

Did you ever lose your confidence? I never lost my confidence. I've never shot an outboard the free throw line. I don't know how that happens. I mean, you make it to the level, to the place to the point where you're playing in the NBA. You made it to the NBA. I was a second to last pick in the gym. draft. I never lost my confidence because I made it to the NBA. I believed in myself.

Me personally, I don't know what players go through to lose their confidence, but I've never played on the team where a guy lost his confidence. That's just something I can't speak on. When you watch Simmons play, could I argue if you surrounded him with shooters that he works in this league? You just got to get him the right fit of players. Is that fair? Well, you can't, he can't be on the team with a dominant big man like NB because NB B draws so much attention, he draws double teams and a lot of time when he's swing, swing, and he gets the ball on the corner and he can't take that shot, you can kill the whole offense. I think he needs to be a power forward.

If he's not going to work on his game, if he's not going to work on his shot, then put him at power forward and let him post up and initiate the offense as a power for it because a lot of teams do that these days. But he can't be a point guard not being able to shoot this league. And you can't be a point guard getting a hackabend. That don't even make sense. You know, it's funny. Magic Johnson said yesterday, Stephen, he said he thinks LeBron will be the face of the league one more year.

And then Kevin Durant will. And I went back 40 years and I could only count seven guys who I really believe, some for a long time, some not, that had been like what I thought the face of the league. It was Magic Bird, back to Magic Michael, Duncan Shack, and then Col. Kobe briefly, then to LeBron. So seven guys in 40 years. And even when Michael Jordan left, he was still the face of the league. Steph Curry got close for a year or two with LeBron, but LeBron was still the face of the league.

And I said this about Kevin Durant. I'm not sure he wants to be the face of the league. I mean, he wasn't, you know, insane. I agree with you. Yeah. I don't think he wants to be a baller. Tim Duncan didn't care. So Kevin DeRoeh is just like Tim Duncan.

Tim Duncan didn't care about being the face of the league. Tim Duncan wanted to win championships. he wanted to play basketball, he wanted to be the best basketball player he could be. And Katie's the same way. He could care less. I'm not saying LeBron comes out to play, to be the face of the league, but he cares because he's been that for so long. And to whom much is given, much is required.

He leads by example in that fashion. But Katie is just like Tim Duncan. He comes out to play basketball. He wants to be the best teammate he can be, and he wants to be the best player he can be. And that's all he really care about. When you were playing with Duncan in his prime, did you feel he was the best player in the league? Oh, by far, by far. When we won the championship in 2003, nobody could do anything with Tim Duncan.

When you're having almost a quadriple double in the playoffs, and I just seen him dominate everybody all season long, it was a blessing to actually see the best player in the league, the MVP, the finals MVP that year. And when you're on a team with a guy like that, it's easy to see that he's the best. It's not even up a question. Wow.

So when you look at the Clippers, so Kauai Leonard's out, Chris Paul's out. It looks like Chris Paul returned, perhaps in game three. Kauai may not return. Do you trust Paul George to carry this team? Now, he did late against Utah, but Utah doesn't have very good wing defenders. That's their deficiency. Do you think you can put it on Paul George's shoulders and say beat Phoenix? Do you trust him?

Yeah, I do. I mean, you got to look at it. Even though he had Kauai, this is probably the scrappiest team in the playoffs. This team plays hard. They have a team full of dogs and look at the coaches. They have dog coaches, T. Lou, Chauncey Phillips, guys that know how to scrap

and guys that know what it takes to go out there and win championships. So I think they can, man, because they're doing it as a collective group just like Phoenix is doing. It's not one of two players. Yeah, yeah, Book is going down. Book is having an unbelievable postseason.

Book is one of my favorite players in the league right now. But this team is a scrappy team. And when you have a team full of dogs that are going to go out there and play as a collective, play team defense and going to fight, this team was down too old in both rounds before. So you can't count them out. And I think PJ is doing a great job of Silas and his critics. You know, it's interesting, Steve.

Boondon Holzer, who you played under doesn't make a lot of adjustments. Tai Liu makes a million of them. But when Ty Lou is changing around, there's a delicate balance when you have to go up to a guy that started the game before and say you're not starting tonight. You know, when you were with San Antonio, you kind of knew the starting lineup, the first guy off the bench, it was pretty certain most nights. Clippers got like 10 dudes that play. Give me an insight into Tyloos personality. Why can Ty do that?

And it doesn't bother any of his players when he shifts things constantly. Well, Pop did that too with Malik Rose and David Robinson. He shifted them and Stephen Steve Smith, my OG was starting at the beginning of the season. but I was playing well coming off the bench and I eventually end up starting on the team. So I think what Greg Poppich do, where Poppich did, I think T.Loole do the same thing. He makes everybody feeling poor.

He lets everybody know their role at the beginning of the season and know what's expected of them. So when it's their time or when their number is called, they're ready. You know, letting the guy know that, hey, you might not play at the beginning of season, but doing the end of the season where it counts, during the playoffs, we might need you.

So stay ready. Just telling the guy that, and letting him know where he stands, it's easy for him to stay involved and stay intact to what the team is doing and buy into what the team is doing. But if you don't communicate with a guy like Steve Nash did DeAndre Jordan

end up playing him, then not playing him in the playoffs when you need him, it's going to cause friction and it's going to be guys talking about the coaches back and it's going to kill the team morale a little bit. But I think Ty Lewis doing a great job of keeping everybody involved, letting everybody know that they're important

just as the star players on the team. And that's why the guys that's coming in now replacing with Kauai's herd are having success. By the way, Trey Young is on. fire. He's a very slight player. He doesn't have a big build. And he's super quick, he's got super range. He would be, I would think, Stephen, a hard guy. When I look at these curries and these Trey Youngs, you were a bigger, stronger guy. How do you defend a dame, a steff, a

tray? I mean, God, they're at the logo. They're at half court. What do you do? Do you trap them? How do you defend them. It's kind of hard because these guys handled the ball like I've never seen before. You know, not only can they shoot, but they can get their own shot. They handle well. They have a high IQ. So dame, stuff and those guys, it's kind of hard to stop. But I think Don Nelson was the best at it.

Okay, I can't stop your offense. What I'm going to do every play down court, I'm going to put you on the block and post you up, not the win out of you, and make you play defense every play. And I guarantee you by the end of the four quarter, a lot of those shots, they're shooting going to be going to be falling short. Yeah. You got to go at them on, you got to make them play D. And I remember when we played Steve Nash, Colin, the first five plays of the game,

whoever Steve Nash regarding, we was posting them up, and we ended up beating Phoenix by 30. Make them pay on the other end. Stephen Jackson, Fox Sports NBA analysts. Good seeing you, man. You too, my man. NetSuite by Oracle, the number one cloud financial system, no matter how big you get, they'll work for you. QuickBooks is QuickSand.

graduate to NetSuite. Today, NetSuite.com slash Herd Right now. Joy with the News. Turn on the news. This is the Hurdline News. Well, the Ravens are making a conscious effort to improve their passing game. They signed Sammy Watkins and drafted receiver Rashad Bateman in the first rounds. Lamar Jackson is focusing specifically on deep passes this offseason in hopes Baltimore will be much better in that department in 2021. He said, people always are saying we throw short intermediate routes and stuff like that. But we had some chances last year.

We hit some of them, but we're just trying to be more consistent this year. That's where strides happen. It starts in practice. And hopefully it transitions to the game. We've just got to keep working on it. Well, yeah, I mean, when you run the ball as well as them and they suck defenses in, you've got to be able to beat them over the top. And that's what they really need to do.

And by the way, the value, this is what really hurt Brady in New England at the end. if you have to score only on 12 play drives, you're asking your offense. It's hard to go. Sometimes you need cheap, easy points. You have to have some big play potential. Yeah, that Buffalo does. Kansas City does.

Now, Tampa does. Otherwise, you're basically, Green Bay does with Devante Adams. Otherwise, just think about it, to get to three or four touchdowns, if you need 12 plays per drive, you're not going to have a fumble. You're not going to have penalties. No, in all fairness, the Ravens can get huge. plays with Lamar Jackson's feet, but you want to be able to throw it over the top. You're absolutely right. It takes time also, like that being able to throw it over the top

can make things happen faster. They ranked last and passing yards and past attempts last season. He is completing 36% of his passes that traveled at least 20 air yards over the last two seasons. So he's 17th among all quarterbacks in that span. Well, they didn't have great receivers either. They haven't proven that department. But also, if there's any quarterback in the league who says he's going to fix something in the off season and comebacks and it's fixed, it's Lamar Jackson. And also, Lamar doesn't have to be top six to eight in that category. If Lamar is top 13 to 15.

As long as he can keep the defense honest in that department, that's all they need. But Lamar is somebody who when he says he's going to fix something about his game or he's going to change something or he's tweaking something or they're working on something in the off season, I'm going to trust him because he's gotten better every single year and he has that ability. He has that ability. He's still ascending. So the return of Dak Prescott is obviously the main storyline of the Cowboys heading into the season, but they're also going to be getting some key pieces from their offensive lineback,

and Dak thinks that that is the key to their success this season. They're the most important, if you ask me. I mean, from the time that I got drafted here until now, this offense was built off of those guys. Those are the three most veteran guys on this team, and that's for a reason. Those guys are walking pro-bowl guys when they're healthy. of future Hall of Famers. And just to have those three guys lead the five guys up front, everything starts with them. The run game, then that allows the past game to open up.

So when you have those guys back, healthy, energized, it's special. Don't sleep on Dallas this year. He's talking about Ty Smith, Zach Martin, and Lyle Collins. Well, two of those three are going to be Hall of Famers. Lyle Collins missed the entire season with a hip injury. Ty Smith missed 14 games. Cameron Irving missed 11 games. Zach Martin missed six games.

missed three games. So they had a really patchwork offensive line last year on top of everything else. Irving's now in Carolina, I think. The reality of what's happened with Dallas is, and I feel this way with the Rams too. The Rams and the Cowboys are kind of in a cross-your-fingers mode with an extra NFL game.

17 games. The Cowboys and the Rams could be really good. Yeah. But they have players who have been banged up. They've got older offensive linemen. And if they stay healthy, Stafford and Dack are going to have. big gears. If not, they're going to be brought in for their life.

Well, I will also say now that they have this 17 game season, and we talked a little bit about this, I think fans and organization and media are going to have to be just a little more comfortable with the idea that some guys are not going to be playing later. That is the tradeoff

that you're making with adding an extra game. It's not just an extra game. That is a lot of extra wear and tear on your body. I mean, look how important buys were before heading into the postseason. It's going to be huge for veterans to manage their time and how much recovery time they have towards the end of the season.

So there's going to be some sort of load management process towards the end of the season, especially for veteran teams. And fans are just going to have to get used to that in media too. Like that's the tradeoff of having an additional game because we judge everyone off their postseason performance. So we can't expect to see it late in the season if they're not playing for anything for them to be out there. That's right.

So Tim Tebow is trying to make the Jaguars roster as a tight end this year. So what do we always say? Nothing is everything, but everything is something, right? He didn't get an invitation to tight end university, led by George Kittle and Greg Olson, who we had on the show last week. Both players made it clear the decision was not personal. Kittle said they have so few spots that he had a hard time giving one to someone who was just starting out at the position. I think that's fair.

I think Tim would admit that's fair. And Olson added that they'd love to have him once he is officially a tight end on a roster. They said it was tough to not bring a backup tight ends from a team that's actually made the team in his playing. You know, tough to take that spot away from that guy to give it to Tim Tebow. It's going to be, I just, I cannot wait to watch this whole Jaguar scene with Urban and Trevor Lawrence. I've never in my life wanted to watch Jacksonville. This will be the first time, even when the Jackdale Rio and Coughlin had success, Mark Brunel.

It's the first time I've ever really wanted to watch Jacksonville play. I'm fascinated by this whole situation. And I'm not putting any kind of massive expectation on them. As far as Trevor Lawrence goes, I'm kind of looking at it as I did with the Bengals last year, which is like I know he's great. I want to see what he does in the NFL level, get through a season, but there's so many other pieces that are going on here that weren't going on in Cincinnati.

Tim looks, I mean, this is just my interpretation of the small bit of video we have. Tim looks like more of a blocking tight end, but I think it's very hard to ask a former quarterback to be a blocking tight end. His body is that of a blocking tight end. He is not, that is not the body of a vertical tight end. That's a blocking tight end. I just, I have no idea what to expect. I'm with you. How? He was a quarterback his entire career. Well, if somebody puts their hand in the dirt and is rushing the passer, I think Tim's going to be overwhelmed a little bit blocking him. I think there are some players, not all, not all, not generalizing.

Some might want to put a little extra zest on it too when he's out there. Zest is a very fair word. We've never used that word on the show. I think Joy got the perfect word. A little extra zest. Sounds like the name of a really popular soap or shampoo. I think it is actually. when you put your finger down again. Good stuff. Joy with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd Lie News. Okay, so the NBA drafts lottery is tonight. It's ridiculous. Ping-pong balls decide who drafts. I think it's great. I'll give you, these are just my 10.

The 10 things I love in sports that aren't games. Next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, it's Ben. host of the fifth hour with Ben Mather, along with my trusty sidekick, David Gascone, would mean a lot to have you join us on our weekly auditory journey. You're asking what in God's name is the fifth hour? I'll tell you, it's a spinoff of the Ben Mather show, a cult hit overnights on FSR.

Why should you listen? Picture, if you will, a world where we chat with captains of industry, in media, sports, and more every week, explore some amazing facts about human nature and more. Listen to the fifth hour with Ben Mather on the Iheart radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. A win is a win.

A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations,

stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow Act. Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking.

What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about cracking in the 80s. To be clear, 84 was big to me, not just because of crack.

I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really?

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the I Heart Ready app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests.

I'm talking, Tript Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross,

because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines,

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Navian tankless water heaters go tankless with Navian. So tonight's the NBA draft lottery. And there are, we wrote down about eight or nine or ten. We got to about 10 was the actual number today of my favorite things in sports, mine, not necessarily yours, that don't involve a game. So there's no particular order for these. These are just 10 things joy I like that don't involve a game in sports. So the first one's the NBA draft lottery.

So basically the teams that don't make the playoffs, getting a lottery, ping pong balls to determine the NBA draft order. Now last year it got a huge number because four and a half million people watched because of Zion and John Morant. And so you had like two absolute home run draft picks. I don't know if you get as high a number, but it should be noted. Last year, this next draft is really good. There's like 12 guys that can play. That's a huge number of highly touted players, eight to 12 really good players.

So I love the NBA draft lot. Another one, I love this, NFL schedule release. Yes. I don't understand why people don't take this seriously. Folks, there's reason multiple networks did three-hour shows on this, because the interest keeps ramping up. It's also the first 17-game schedule. There is no doubt in my mind that where you play people matters.

You don't want to play Andy Reid in September. You'd rather go to Lambo early than in December. You don't want to face cold-weathered teams in a blizzard. They have an advantage because they play in it. When is your buy? When is your buy? Do you have to go back-to-back West Coast? What times are the games?

I love the NFL schedule. schedule release. The NFL draft. People forget this. 20 years ago, it was not a big deal. The last three have averaged over 6.5 million people. And also, they're taking it to new cities, so they made it into a rock event. This is probably, well, it's not probably, the biggest non-game event in the country, I think.

And what they're doing in the NFL, they've smartly, they decided to get it out of New York, smart. Secondly, they've expanded it to days. And I think a lot of what makes the NFL fun is that the NFL is embracing college football, which I wish the NBA would do with college basketball. They're saying, listen, these Ohio State, Bama, Clemson, Michigan, Notre Dame fans, Oklahoma fans, they don't have to like our league. They watch us. We introduce them to our league for three and four days.

I would say March Madness Selection Sunday. It's still one of the most bet sporting events in America. You know, it's funny about it. The lowest seed to ever make a championship game was an eight. So even though you know it's going to be dominated by one, two, three, four, and five seats, even though 32 of the bids are automatic, so you know going into it, there is something about those bubble teams that pulls you in and where does Georgetown have to go and where's it? And you love seeing the kids celebrate.

It's great. It really is. And for a lot of these kids, you know, they grow up in an area. They go to that college. They don't do a lot of national. national travel. So to see a small Western college go all the way east is fun. How about the college football selection show?

Now, it gets dinged a little because it's Alabama, Clemson, probably Ohio State, and Oklahoma. But, you know, it's funny. Years ago, you used to determine your college football. When anybody criticizes the playoff, I'm like, it used to be a poll. And then they use these goofy computers for years that nobody could figure out. The downs, now they're going to expand this. So my guess is, Joy, this is going to get much bigger. Yes.

So when you add eight teams to this, and it's not going to get bigger because of the top four, it's going to get bigger because of the bottom four and the at-large birth. So of all the things I'm mentioning, this will grow the fastest, the college football selection show. I would say opening of NFL free agency, which was not a thing four years ago, but the combination of young general managers willing to go. for it. I mean, Joy and I said it this year. Last two years, NFL free agency has been better than NBA free agency. They have that two-day negotiation period. What's funny is they pretend like it starts at a certain hour, but the minute you can do it, they announce all the deals,

meaning they've been working on this stuff for like 48 hours before it happens. I would also say the NBA trade deadline. Now, there's always more talk than actual trades, but last year's trade deadline. The Nuggets acquired Aaron Gordon and the heat got Victorolo Dippa, who was hurt later. But in the history of the league Drexler to the Rockets, Palgasol to the Lakers, Nick Scott Carmelow, Ray Allen to the Sonics. Generally, you get about one or two moderate moves, not a lot of home runs, but it's still fun. I would say the Olympics opening ceremony is probably globally, easily the biggest of all of these. You know, your parade of nations.

And by the way, it's a multi-million dollar event. And for a lot of countries, Russia, China, it is an opportunity for them to show off, often criticize a communist country. They come in. It is very important to look good to the rest of the nation. So tens of millions of dollars. And they are already, these nations work on this for over a year. How about Connor McGregor press conferences?

Okay, I know this is a new thing. But Nate Diaz and him got into a fight. You have to admit, he'll do something. I mean, he's ludicrous. The dress, he'll throw stuff. He'll taunt very good. He's got good whiskey, I'm told, too. I don't drink it.

And I, obviously, national. signing day. It's a dork fest. But I love college football national signing day. This has always been my thing where the kids now put the hats up. And now most of them signed before this day. There's always about 15 really good players. They put the four hats up and the families around them

and everybody on the message board just freaking out. And they think they know and they don't know. I love National Letter of Intent Day. I asked the question at a McGregor press conference once. Got him very fired up. You asked a question. Yeah, when I was on Undisputed, we went to the Alvarez-McGregor fight. What was your question?

Alvarez, I believe, said that McGregor was an embarrassment to Ireland, I think. I said something like that. What did he say to that? It's not appropriate for television. That is funny. What they are a scene. And I went to the first McGregor-Mayweather, I mean, press conferences loose, but whatever, that special. tactical was at Staples leading up to that fight.

So, like, remember they did that tour? I do remember that. Yeah, so I went to the first one at Staples. Can I tell you the first question I ever asked, ever? So I got my, this is over 30 years ago, I got a job, not really a job. Scott Reynolds was a sports director in Vegas. And I had kind of interned there a little bit, and he put me on, and it was my first assignment. So they gave me a real easy assignment.

I interviewed after the baseball game, the AAA baseball game. You know how AAA baseball games, minor league games have these funny acts to get fans? They hired Captain Dynamite. So I said, Scott, there's this guy called Captain Dynamite at the baseball game. I'm going to go do what they call a package on it, like a minute package. So, you know, it's a local feature. So I go over there and the game ends and here comes this old 65, 70-year-old guy, Captain Dynamite. And he puts himself in a box and the crowd's all freaking out and there's dynamite in it.

And he goes in the box and there's a countdown on the scoreboard and cabloomy. So this is true story. This is my first assignment in television. I go over with a camera guy for KVC, KVBC Channel 3. And I said, hey, Captain Dynamite, can you hear in this seven. 70-year-old man looks at me and goes, hell yeah, I'll have another beer. And that piece of video, Fred Rogan's a sportscaster in L.A.,

I sent it to him because he does funny videos, and George Michael's sports machine ran it. That's exactly what he said. I was like, is this guy a stand-up comic? That would go viral today. I can remember. I remember everything. I have the piece of tape somewhere.

It's Captain Din. It's probably on YouTube. It's Captain Dynamics. in Cashman Field in Las Vegas. I do not remember my first question in television. Well, think about that. We'll have it tomorrow, I promise you. We'll find it on YouTube.

Summer's here. Get active, shed pounds, MDrive, boost, and burn. Check it out. Free shipping, 60-day money-back guarantee. Visit mdrivefor-men.com. Today, I'll tell you this. My weird memory, I was wearing a blue and white striped shirt. And wait until you see my hair.

I had a lot of it. Captain Dynamite, baby. See you tomorrow. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast.

From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors.

Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to Look Back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show.

This is a place for raw, unfilled of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

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